Chapter VIII: The Confrontation with Therese

            Boxer was in heavy meditation when he suddenly stirred.  The Fighter Kai, watching intently, was pleased with his student’s progress.  He had sensed the evil power on the ship despite his heavy meditation.  Boxer grew immensely stronger every second.

            “He’d rival my power soon were he not just a human,” the Fighter Kai thought for a moment and then turned to his student who wished to address him.

            “Fighter Kai,” Boxer began, his eyes intent and his hair flowing behind him as he got up, “I sense something dark on the ship; something of immense power.”

            “Do you sense conflict?” his teacher asked.

            Boxer shook his head.  “I don’t think so…not with him.  I’m not quite sure, really.  I sense a conflict with someone…but not this dark entity.  Not yet.”

            “That’s quite good; I sense about the same thing,” the Fighter Kai told him.  “Strange, though; the person we’re about to fight doesn’t seem to have any malevolent or hostile intentions.  Well… first things first.  We must rescue the girl.”

            Boxer nodded.  “Right.” He turned to the computer screen and typed a few variables in, turning to the Fighter Kai in turn.  “Ten minutes until arrival at the hangar bay.  They appear to be letting us in.”

            “That’s a relief,” the Fighter Kai acknowledged.  “These capsules aren’t very well suited for battle.  Contact the others and tell them to get ready…strange, though, I don’t sense that they’d really need to be ready right away… it’s something farther away…”

            The Kai sat down.  “I don’t quite understand it,” he admitted.  “There are so many variables going into this battle…just notify the others that we’ll be there soon.”

            Boxer, while equally perplexed as the Kai but curious as to what would happen once they boarded, followed his mentor’s orders and opened a hailing frequency with their sister ship.

***

            With a ship full of three ancient and powerful warriors without a supervisory figure, it was easy enough to presume that the ship would be a pigsty.  Indeed, it was.  There were water and soda bottles scattered all around, bags of health food snacks littered across the floor, battered training clothes lying over furniture, and the three warriors themselves were no better off.

            18 was slumped over a circular dining table still in a nightgown, Garuda was sprawled out over the couch, his whip still held tightly in his hand, and Piccolo was facedown on the floor, without any of his weighted clothing on.  All three were fast asleep, of course.

Naturally, when the beeping noise of the hailing frequency began, it startled them all into a state of confusion.  18 tried to stand up all at once and fell off of the table right onto her head.  She was the lucky one.

            Garuda awoke with such a frightened start, that he cracked his whip instinctively, without thinking of what his possible target might be.  At that very moment, Piccolo sprang perfectly upright, and moved directly into Garuda’s line of fire.  At once, the Namekian warrior was entangled in Garuda’s whip hold, and Garuda, surprised that he had caught something, immediately began to surge electricity through his whip.

            “Yah!” Piccolo cried at the pain.  “Get it OFF!!!” He powered up and sent the whip flying back towards Garuda, who only then became aware of the situation.  He ducked to move himself out of the path of his electrified whip, but he didn’t quite make it; his hair was caught and promptly caught fire.  Piccolo’s garments had caught fire as well, and there was a great deal of screaming.  However, through it all, the computer beeped Boxer’s hailing frequency, and as soon as 18 got her bearings straight, she accepted the message.

***

            As soon as the screen came on, Boxer drew back in surprise.  Standing before him was 18, her hair as rattled and frizzy as he had ever seen it, with the other two warriors on fire in the background, screaming madly.

            Boxer cocked his head to one side.  “Uh…18? Is everything OK on your end?” Piccolo and Garuda suddenly ran off-screen, and Garuda came back with a fire extinguisher, spraying wildly, missing both his hair and Piccolo’s clothes.

            “Boxer? Is that you?” she seemed surprised and impressed.  “You’ve grown into a fine warrior…” She stopped and responded to Boxer’s question.  “We’re just fine, Boxer…” she said, glancing over her shoulder and barking orders.  “Stop, drop, and roll, you morons!” This only promoted a wild stream of fire extinguisher fluid her way, and she turned around, her face completely covered in foam, and her eyes seeming angry.

            “What do you want?” she grumbled, while Piccolo and Garuda ran around in circles aimlessly (they seemed to have run out of foam), eventually crashing into each other head-on and falling to the ground, writhing in more pain.  Boxer cringed before he spoke again.

            “We uh… just wanted to tell you that we’ll be docking in about ten minutes… I hope you can pull yourselves together in that time.”

            She seemed to crack a giggle or two, and foam flew from her nostrils.  “We’ll meet you in the hangar,” she assured, then turned around again to the two warriors who were acting like hurt dogs.  “Idiots! You sure know how to make spectacles of yourselves! I’ll show you a thing or two about…” She turned around and shut off the message screen.

            Boxer’s eyes went wide with surprise at what he had just seen, but then he just shook his head and walked back towards the Fighter Kai, who had not seen the transmission and was calmly sipping some tea.

            “How did it go?” he asked his student, putting the beverage down.

            “It went…” Boxer tried to find an adjective to describe the expert display of pandemonium which he had just borne witness to, but then utterly failed and settled for a less descriptive word.  “It went well.  They got the message.”

            “Good!” the Kai smiled.  “Your first great challenge lies ahead, Boxer.  Do not be afraid; fear attracts the fearful.  Fear is your enemy, Boxer.  With each foe you conquer, you conquer also your fears.  Do not be afraid, no matter how bad the odds look.  Things have a way of turning around just when you need it the most…” he trailed off, seeming to recollect a battle from his long history as a fighter.

            “You’ll do fine,” he reassured his student.  “After all, we’ll all be there to cheer you on.”

“Cheer me on?” he queried.  “Won’t you fight alongside me?”

            “Do you sense that we will?” the Fighter Kai retorted.  “You must answer these things for yourself, Boxer.  Whatever you feel will be so.  Do you need our help, Boxer? Truly, do you need it to defeat your upcoming adversary?”

            The blue-haired warrior sensed nothing.  “I will wait and see,” he replied.

            “Just as well,” the Kai conceded.  “Patience is a virtue.”

***

            Therese and Gemini stared out the large window in the hangar, overlooking space.  At last, two shimmering dots appeared in the distance and appeared to be making headway towards the ship.

            “It’s odd,” Gemini started, “But I barely sense anything.  They’re not very strong at all, are they? How will they be of any use to you?”

            “You have much to learn of the martial arts, Gemini,” the Mistress of the ship explained.  “If they came roaring in here showing their full power levels, Alexander would probably have their ships blasted to smithereens before they even got on board.  They are hiding their true power levels to try to make themselves not seem too conspicuous.  They may have overdone it, but at least they will be able to get onboard.”

            “Hiding their power levels?” the princess asked again.  “I don’t understand.”

            “Sense me, Gemini,” Therese challenged.  “What do you feel?”

            Gemini reached out with her psychic powers into Therese’s being, but felt nothing related to power level.  “I barely sense anything,” she confessed.  “But how can that be? You were immensely powerful just before!”

            “True, and I still am,” Therese explicated.  “But, I cannot reach that power level unless I power up, by concentrating and focusing my energy.  By keeping my power level low, I save energy and don’t draw any attention to myself.  It’s an easy technique to master, but a vital one.”

            “I really just don’t understand fighting at all,” Gemini said, shaking her head.  “I pray that you and these Earth warriors have mastered it sufficiently so that I won’t have to.”

            “We will wait and see,” said Therese as the ships neared and the airlock opened.  “We shall see.”

***

            The capsule landed with a rattle, but Boxer and the Fighter Kai stood perfectly still.  Shortly afterwards, the ramp opened into the hangar of the warship and the two warriors descended.  Parallel to them, out of the corner of his eye, Boxer caught Piccolo, Garuda, and 18 dismounting from their ship.  They were perfectly groomed, amazingly enough, and looked battle-ready.

            The five warriors met in the center of their two ships, and stood from left to right, Garuda, the Fighter Kai, Boxer in the center, Piccolo, and 18.  In the distance, they saw two feminine figures, and strode as one unit towards them.

            When they were standing no more than five feet away, they stopped their march.  “There,” said the Fighter Kai, and motioned towards the purple-haired girl in the dark-colored robes.  “She is Gemini; the one we are here to rescue.”

            “This is the one who appeared to me in my vision,” she explained to her companion, who was taller than she, wore an ominous black robe and had perfectly straight black hair down to her midsection.  The mysterious woman just nodded.  She was in her early thirties, presumably, but had a mysterious air about her.  Boxer couldn’t quite put his finger on who she was or what role she played in the grand scheme of things.

            The mysterious woman just nodded and remained silent.  It didn’t seem to matter: Boxer was captivated with Gemini.  She was truly the most beautiful individual he had ever seen.  She had a strange sort of otherworldly splendor that Boxer could not draw his eyes away from.  At last, Gemini returned his stare, eyeing him strangely, and the blue-haired warrior pulled away, slightly embarrassed.  Neither one said a word.

            At last, the Fighter Kai stepped forward.  “I am the Fighter Kai, a deity in service of the Grand Kai in Earth’s afterlife.  I was sent to investigate the chain of events that began with the dispatch of Nappa and Raditz to Earth.  I have reason to believe that it originated here.”

            “Your reasoning was correct,” replied the mysterious woman in a bewitching tone of voice, which was apparently her ordinary one.  “My master, Alexander dispatched them to do his dirty work.  However, it seems that they fell to your band of merry men.  Might I ask just who they are?”

            “Certainly,” the Fighter Kai granted.  “These are my friends, Garuda, Boxer, Piccolo, and Android 18.”

            “That’s just 18 for short,” she interrupted, smoothing her hair with one hand, her other hand on her left hip.

            “I see,” the mysterious woman said.  “My name is Therese.  Apparently, you already know of my companion Gemini.  We have much to discuss.”

            The Fighter Kai nodded.  “Indeed we do.  I will share my story if you will share yours.”

            “Of course,” Therese agreed. 

***

            A while later, their stories were told in full, each one full of excitement, plot twists, and the occasional twinge of pity or regret. 

            “Well, now that we are well-acquainted, I should probably tell you something,” Therese began.

            “I’m listening,” the Kai responded.

            “Your primary concern here is probably rescuing the girl?” the prophet asked.  The Fighter Kai nodded.  “Well, I’m afraid your work was in vain.  I have already saved her.  She is safe with me, but neither one of us has any place to return to.”

            “Well,” Boxer interposed, stepping forward, “You two would be welcome at my company, The Capsule Corporation, back on Earth.  I’d be more than happy to set you up there.”

            Therese nodded.  “A generous offer.  We’ll take you up on that eventually, but first things first.  We must stop Alexander; he is a madman, and it will take a team of strong warriors to defeat him.  Are you up to the challenge?”

            “We would never back down,” Garuda grunted.  “It’s our job to shut down evil slime like this Alexander guy.”

            “Good, the spirit is willing,” Therese acknowledged.  “But how fares the flesh? Certainly, if you’re not strong, you’re of no use to me.”

            “What are you suggesting, Therese?” The Fighter Kai asked, knowing the answer.

“A simple battle; that’s all,” she clarified, as if her hinting had really needed clarification.  “I’m not foolish like Alexander; I would never overestimate my own strength.  I would not dare take all of you on at once.  I suggest I face your weakest; your most inexperienced.  If he (or she, as the case may be) can defeat me, then certainly, working together, we could defeat Alexander.  If not, things may be difficult.  This is only a precaution, I assure you.  I am not too proud as to toss duty aside in favor of play fighting.”

“Certainly you don’t mean a fight to the death?” Piccolo questioned.  “That would be foolish.

“I am no fool,” she agreed.  “It should be apparent when one of us is beaten, or when one of us gives up.  I refuse to let killing take place; without you five, I’d be of no use against Alexander, but as I know his weaknesses, without me, you five would be equally as useless.”

“I wouldn’t bet on that,” 18 grumbled, but let the insult slide for the time being.

She eyed the ragtag bunch.  “So, which one of you will it be? Boxer, maybe? From your story, he seems the newest at this.”

“Boxer will do well,” the Fighter Kai declared.  “He is well-trained, powerful, and determined.  We will be here as his moral support, if that’s all right.”

Therese nodded in agreement.  “Of course.”

Boxer, unafraid, stepped forward, as the other four warriors and Gemini stepped backwards in their respective directions.  Therese and Boxer met face to face in the middle of the hangar and stared into each others’ eyes.

“Fight well, Boxer,” Therese warned, “For I certainly will.”

“I have yet to disappoint,” Boxer affirmed, unmoving.

“Boxer!” Piccolo called.  “Remember your training! Remember who you are!”

Boxer turned and nodded to his first mentor.  “I will not fail you, Piccolo.”

“Well then,” Therese said, rubbing her wrists “Let the battle begin!”